The present invention relates in general to the field of igniters, and more particularly, to igniters having a child resistant feature in the nature of a safety release locking trigger.
An igniter is generally a multi-purpose lighting device which is operative for producing a flame at the end of an elongated nozzle. Igniters have a variety of household and commercial applications, for example, for lighting barbecues, fireplaces, candles, torches, tobacco products, gas stoves, pilot lights, etc. Igniters are now being regulated to require child safety features similar to regulations pertaining to disposable lighters. The idea of the child safety feature is to preclude a curious child from lighting an igniter and accidentally causing burns to the child or starting another fire.
Known igniters make use of a release button located generally on top of the trigger housing. The idea being that a child could not press down the release button and squeeze the trigger at the same time. One known construction depends on the amount of force used to depress the release button. Another known construction relies on the rotation direction of a wheel to release the trigger, e.g., see U.S. Pat. No. 6,093,017. Both of these methods are awkward to operate the igniter unless the adult has both dexterity and strength in a single hand. Otherwise an adult requires two hands to operate the igniter that in the past required only one hand. Other known constructions are disclosed in U.S. Pat. Nos. 5,897,308; 5,697,775; 5,967,768; 6,042,367 and 6,022,212.
The present invention overcomes the problem of making an igniter difficult for young children to operate and yet leave the igniter easy for an adult to operate.